Lover of free, fast and furious rivers, Evan Garcia is a leading American kayaker who in 2007 won the Freestyle Kayaking World Championships in Canada. Currently, the 26-year-old native of Montana is more focused on whitewater downhill kayaking and is a tireless seeker and runner of waterfalls around the world.

It has been almost a month since December 29, 2014, when he took his ride to the afterlife. After 96 years of fruitful existence, Cecilio Olivares Cadagan, the much loved and respected pioneer from the Baker River, the iconic leader of the horseback ride through the Aysen region in 2007 that helped launch an ultimately successful campaign for a Patagonia without Dams, has passed away.

The Chilean coastal ecosystem known as Cordillera de la Costa, situated just west of the city of Osorno in the Los Lagos region of southern Chile, hides a paradise of white sand beaches and turquoise waters together with dense, tangled Valdivian temperate rainforest that extends to the Pacific coast. It is a place rich in biodiversity, where it is still possible to find ancient alerces. As well, one can find a still thriving Huilliche indigenous culture here that has largely remained faithful to its ancestral traditions. To protect the native forest and indigenous communities, in 2000 a network of indigenous parks was created called Mapu Lahual, which in the native Mapudungun language means “land of alerces.”

At Patagon Journal, we are thrilled to present you with our new edition, “The Photographic Issue.” About two-thirds of this edition is jam-packed with incredible photo stories, and it is without doubt our most beautiful magazine yet. In particular, four extensive photographic essays from some of the best photographers working today in Patagonia. Brian O’Keefe, co-founder of Catch Magazine, gives us stunning images of Patagonia from the perspective of fly fishing at the region’s rivers and lakes. We have a photo essay highlighting the minimalist photography of our contributing editor, Pablo Valenzuela. There is an environmental photo essay from Bridget Besaw, an award-winning photographer for several magazines in the United States. And renowned Chilean photographer Augusto Dominguez contributes a nature photo essay from the wilds of Patagonia.

The Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) is an organization that brings together more than 1,000 members in the adventure travel industry from around the world, including specialized tour operators, media, products, and consultants, among others. Chile has participated in this organization for more than seven years through Turismo Chile, seeing an important opportunity to promote our travel sector to this niche. Every year a summit is organized in different parts of the world that brings together more than 700 members for a four day event to discuss issues and industry trends such as marketing, sustainability, social networks, and business practices.

Snow-capped volcanoes, mountain lakes, rapid rivers and thick native forest are some of the features of the areas in and around Pucón and Curarrehue in southern Chile’s Araucania region. Its also a region that even today hosts a Mapuche indigenous culture which has a deep connection with the Earth. Now, this area is targeted en masse by small-scale hydroelectric dam projects. Just in these two municipalities alone some 59 permits have been granted for the construction of dams.

With a passion for high summits, the remote, and the unexplored, Chilean mountaineer Eugenio “Kiko” Guzman, has led or taken part in numerous expeditions and climbs around the world, including Mt. Everest, Mt. McKinley (Alaska), Carstensz Pyramid (Indonesia), and Mt. Lhotse. In 2002, he participated in the first unsupported crossing of the Ellsworth Mountains Range in Antarctica. The business manager of Instituto Vertical in Santiago Chile, Kiko also has vast experience in Patagonia, and counts among his top mountaineering feats his participation in the first ascent in winter of Monte San Valentin, the highest summit in Patagonia. Patagon Journal recently interviewed Kiko about his experience at San Valentin for our most recent issue. Excerpts:

Patagon Journal invites you to participate in a special Instagram-only contest. Show us your best images of mountains and mountaln life. These photos could be simple portraits of mountains, or skiing, climbing, trekking, and other activities in and around mountains. The images can be from Patagonia or anywhere else on the planet.